Season of Docs brings technical writers and open source projects together for a few months to work on open source documentation. 2019 is the first time we’re running this exciting new program.
Join us in making a substantive contribution to open source software development around the world.
Fostering collaboration between open source projects and technical writers
The Open Source Survey showed that documentation is highly valued in open source communities, yet there’s little good documentation out there. Why? Because creating documentation is hard. But...There are people who know how to do docs well. Technical writers know how to structure a documentation site so that people can find and understand the content. They know how to write docs that fit the needs of their audience. Technical writers can also help optimize a community’s processes for open source contribution and on-boarding new contributors.
During Season of Docs, technical writers will spend a few months working closely with open source communities. Each writer works with their chosen open source project. The writers bring their expertise to the projects’ documentation while at the same time learning about open source and new technologies.
Mentors from participating open source organizations share knowledge of their communities’ processes and tools. Together the technical writers and mentors build a new doc set, improve the structure of the existing docs, develop a much-needed tutorial, or improve contribution processes and guides. See more ideas for technical writing projects.
By working together in Season of Docs we raise awareness of open source, of docs, and of technical writing.
How does it work?
- April 2-23: Open source organizations apply to take part in Season of Docs
- April 30: Google publishes the list of accepted mentoring organizations, along with their ideas for documentation projects
- April 30 - June 28: Technical writers choose the project they’d like to work on and submit their proposals to Season of Docs
- July 30: Google announces the accepted technical writer projects
- August 1 - September 1: Community bonding: Technical writers get to know mentors and the open source community, and refine their projects in collaboration with their mentors
- September 2 - November 29: Technical writers work with open source mentors on the accepted projects, and submit their work at the end of the period
- December 10: Google publishes the list of successfully-completed projects.
Join us
Explore the Season of Docs website at g.co/seasonofdocs to learn more about participating in the program. Use our logo and other promotional resources to spread the word. Examine the timeline, check out the FAQ, and get ready to apply!By Sarah Maddox, Google Technical Writer and Andrew Chen, Google Open Source
